Embrace The Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #2)(76)
Author: Alexandra Ivy

Viper clutched Shay to his chest, her long braid trailing over his arm.

"How do I save her?"

"We must take her to him," Styx said softly.

Lifting his head Viper glared at his companion with sharp fury. "Never."

"Only the Anasso can release her from his power."

Viper stepped backward, his fangs extended. "You have tricked me."

Holding up his hands Styx attempted to appear unthreatening. A gesture that was spoiled as the long, deadly blade shimmered in the glow of the torchlight.

Not that he wouldn’t have been just as lethal without the sword.

"No, Viper, this is no trick," he protested, his eyes shimmering with a fierce, unreadable emotion. "I did not realize that he still possessed such strength."

"How do I halt him?"

"You cannot." Styx allowed his gaze to move toward the delicate woman in Viper’s arms. Something that might be regret rippled over his face. "You must take her to the Anasso."

"I have told you no," Viper rasped.

"You have no choice. He will kill her."

Viper narrowed his gaze. "He cannot kill her. He needs her blood to survive."

"He is not… entirely stable in his thinking."

The cold dread deepened as it spread throughout his body. "He is going mad?"

Styx paused. He had spent near a century disguising the slow, relentless decay of his master. It had been a thankless duty he had performed with grim loyalty.

Now he battled with the inner demon of uncertainty that tortured him.

"Mad enough," he grudgingly conceded.

Viper lowered his head until he could bury his face in the sweet silk of Shay’s hair. He cursed the fate that had brought them to this time and place.

"Damn you, Styx. Damn you to hell."

Watching the two vampires carry the unconscious woman from the tunnel Damocles slowly stepped from the shadows. A faint smile touched his lips.

"Well, well I thought I smelled Shalott."

There was a rattle of chains from the cramped cave behind him. Slowly he turned to regard the disgusting troll who was huddled in a distant corner.

"Shay?" Evor demanded, his eyes flashing red. "She’s here?"

Damocles gave a soft laugh as he traced his way across the cave. "Do you think she has come to rescue you, sweet Evor? I fear she is a little too unconscious to give you much thought. Still, her arrival does alter my schedule." Moving across the cave he cast a rueful glance down at the rather plain robe he had chosen. "I wish I had worn the gold. This green really is not festive enough."

Evor licked his lips. He was smart enough to know that whatever was about to happen couldn’t be good.

At least not for him.

"What are you going to do? "

Damocles’s smile widened as a glorious sense of justice washed through him. Soon he would watch his enemy destroyed by his own hands. And even more satisfying his plot would make the entire race of vampires howl in pain.

Events had not unfolded precisely as he had planned, but the end would be the same.

The Anasso would be dead, and he would have the peace that had eluded him for untold centuries.

Reaching up Damocles unlocked the chains from the cave wall. With a tug, he pulled the terrified troll from his corner.

"You, my friend, are about to witness my most triumphant moment. A culmination of brilliant plotting and flawless execution."

Evor tugged against the shackles that held him, but he was no match for a determined imp. For a moment his round face flushed and his pointed teeth clenched in fury.

Then, like any good coward he dropped to his knees and bowed his head in a silent plea for mercy.

"Good master, I think it better that I remain here. I’m not much in the mood for triumphant moments."

Damocles’s smile faded as he reached down to lightly stroke the profusely sweating face.

"Ah, but you’re a vital part of my celebration. You can’t possibly remain behind."

"I would really prefer…"

The words came to a strangled moan as Damocles clutched his fingers around the fat throat and easily jerked the troll off his feet.

Dangling him in the air Damocles watched with cold distaste as the round face turned a strange shade of puce.

"Don’t annoy me, ugly troll, or I’ll cut out your tongue. I wish to savor this victory without listening to your flapping lips." He gave the troll a small shake. "Do you understand?"

It took several tries before Evor managed to get the words past the crushing hold on his throat.

"I understand."

Opening his fingers Damocles allowed the troll to fall back to the floor. His smile returned.

"I knew you’d see things my way. Now let’s go have some fun."

Viper would never recall the agonizing trek through the dark tunnels to the lair of the Anasso. Oh, there were vague flashes of progressively more lavish tapestries, and elegant candelabras that offered a flickering light. And overall a pervasive scent of depraved self-indulgence.

His attention, however, was consumed with a simmering panic for the woman in his arms.

He would not allow her to die.

Not if it meant killing every vampire, troll, and human in the caves.

At last following Styx into a cavern that was dominated by a vast bed and a roaring fire, Viper came to a halt to study the frail vampire that was propped among a pile of satin pillows.

Although he was prepared for a change in the once powerful leader, Viper still experienced a flare of shock at the sight of the frail, almost corpselike reality.

By the blood of the saints, he appeared more dead than alive. An unnerving sight even for a vampire.

How the hell could he still possess such powers? It seemed impossible until Viper met the hectic glitter in the sunken eyes.

The Anasso might literally be upon the verge of extinction, but he would battle to the bitter end.

Reading his thoughts with ease, the Anasso offered a smile that sent a flare of fear through Viper’s heart.

"Ah, I knew you would come to me, Viper" the ancient vampire rasped.

Clutching Shay protectively to his chest Viper glared into the gaunt face.

"You made sure I would have no choice."

"So angry." The elder vampire heaved a faint sigh. "Do you have no sympathy for your master, my son? Do you possess no loyalty to one who has sacrificed all for the race of vampires?"

"I see a fading shadow of a once great vampire who has been lost to his own weaknesses."

The frail features tightened, but the Anasso kept his voice soft and persuasive. It was a voice that had once lured hundreds of vampires to battle.